Let me be very clear – this is my own personal opinion. I’ve checked and there is no case law or statutory authority directly on point as of this writing. So this is simply my own personal opinion as an attorney of where I believe things will go.

But if I had to bet, and if you’re one of the lucky ones out there who already has access to Google Glass, I wouldn’t be in too much of a hurry to wear them on the road when you go out for a drive.

At least, not in Michigan.

There is a traffic law that most people – including (I would bet) most police officers and most personal injury attorneys like me – have never even heard of that will prevent new users from wearing these Google Glasses in the car.

Why do I think Google Glass will be illegal to wear when driving a car?

First, I have to make a personal disclosure – I want one. This product is simply amazing. It’s exciting to wonder if this is a peek into what the future holds for us. With its hands-free power through the use of voice commands to display text, take, record and view photos and videos and send and read text messages and e-mail on a translucent screen before a driver’s eyes, Google Glass seems simply spectacular.

But these same amazing features will likely violate Michigan law (and many other states also have similar statutes that would make Google Glass likewise illegal to wear while operating a car).

The statute in Michigan prohibits:

Drivers from “operat[ing] a motor vehicle … upon the highways of this state with … [an] electronic device that displays a video image that can be viewed by the operator while the motor vehicle is in motion.” (MCL 257.708b(1))

As I see the issue, Google Glass fits the definition of a prohibited “electronic device” to a “G.” And no matter how amazing the product is, do we really want people to be watching last week’s episode of “The Walking Dead” while driving their car on the highway?

You can judge for yourself. Check out the Google Glass simulations on the website’s “How It Feels” page.

Michigan is not be the only state where Google Glass’s “road worthiness” is in doubt.

Back to the California case. A driver who has identified herself on Google + and Twitter as a “Glass Pioneer” and apparently as a “Glass Explorer,” made the national news on October 30, 2013, when she posted on her Google+ account that she had been ticketed for using Google Glass while driving, according to a Huffington Post article.

(Note: For more about Glass Explorers, see below.)

The California driver was cited for violating California’s VC 27602(a), which, much like Michigan’s law, provides:

“A person shall not drive a motor vehicle if a television receiver, a video monitor, or a television or video screen, or any other similar means of visually displaying a television broadcast or video signal that produces entertainment or business applications, is operating and is located in the motor vehicle at a point forward of the back of the driver’s seat, or is operating and the monitor, screen, or display is visible to the driver while driving the motor vehicle.”

How will the states respond to Google Glass?

As I said above, this amazing product is so new that there is almost no case law or statutory authority. But that is already starting to change. The Huffington Post also reported that legislation to prohibit use of Google Glass while driving has already been introduced in Delaware and West Virginia.

State Rep. Joe Miro (R-Pike Creek) said he introduced House Bill 155 to prohibit Delaware drivers from using a “wearable computer with a head-mounted display” while driving because, according to Delawareonline.com:

Google Glass is “an even bigger distraction than other technologies out there that we already prohibit while driving.”

Similarly, West Virginia Delegate Gary G. Howell introduced House Bill 3057 to establish “the offense of operating a motor vehicle using a wearable computer with a head-mounted display” because, according to CNET.com:

“We [Howell and other lawmakers] heard of many crashes caused by texting and driving … I see the Google Glass as an extension.”

Glass Explorers – your Glass is full, not half empty (just please take them off when driving!)

Only a very lucky few people have actually set their eyes – or their hands – on Google Glass. And I’m not one of them, unfortunately.

It appears access is being limited to a rather elite group of “Glass Explorers” (of which the California driver discussed above is apparently one). Well, to paraphrase one of my favorite scenes from the movie Caddyshack, at least she had that going for her [before her ticket]) who have been hand-picked by Google to “get involved … and help shape the future of Glass.”

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